Sumatra

this review centers on Medan, the capital and Northern Sumatra, namely the national park located around bukit lawang. On arrival in medan, the first hurdle to a novice traveller in south east asia are the taxi touts, who can be boistrous and rather daunting. they are however very useful if you know what you want, i.e. where you are going and that you want a meter taxi, any other option will rip you off. if the mood takes you there is a little slice of the western world in the form of Dunkin Donuts just outside the departures terminal, otherwise there is a small cafe/resteraunt further along nearer the arrivals which will serve you a decent nasi/mee ...  Read the complete review

Sumatra is huge, really huge. It is the sixth largest island in the world or more than twice as large as the the British Isles. It is also a little explored island of rainforest, volcanoes and wildlife beyond imagining. Here it is still possible to get off the map and voyage in a tropical land. Indonesia has had its problems in the past decade or so and in Aceh there had been a long-running insurrgency which has been settling down in the past few years with a peace agreement, greater autonomy for the area and both rebels and the government participating in regional elections. The FCO still advises caution in the area but provided the traveller is sensible and ...  Read the complete review

A trip to Sumatra in Indonesia for many is not complete without a trip to Lake Toba. Danau Toba is the local name for this lake which is the biggest in Indonesia. The lake itself is three times larger than Singapore and is about 450 metres deep. Lake Toba is accessible from a small town called Parapat on the north eastern side of the lake. The lake itself is very stunning and reminds me somewhat of Lake Windemere. There is a huge island in the middle of the lake called Samosir island which was originally inhabited by the Batak people of Indonesia. The Bataks are an indigenous tribe of cannibalistic people who came from the northern regions of ...  Read the complete review

I am on the top of a hill. The hill is on top of an island. The island is in a lake. The lake is in the crater of an ancient sunken volcano. The volcano is in the middle of an even bigger island. The island is at the end of a 5000-km long archipelago. Man-hill-island-lake-volcano-island-archipelago - a set of geomorphologic Russian dolls on top of the Island of the Dead - in lake Toba - in Sumatra - in Indonesia. Sumatra - within its half a million odd square kilometres, offers the intrepid traveller a treasure trove of 'far-out' experiences and some unique encounters. It lies on a massive geological fault line and is bisected by the equator. ...  Read the complete review

I lived in Sumatra in Indonesia for 18 months, and although i was young there is still a fair amount i remember and can recommend it as a holiday destination. The best place to visit on the island of Sumatra is Lake Toba, this enormous lake is actually a crater lake, the remnents of what is thought to be the largest volcanic eruption for the last millenium. One popular beauty spot is the waterfall called Pisi Pisi, and another popular activity is a visit to the rainforest to see Orangutangs in the wild. As Indonesia is built up of thousands of islands it is also possible to visit small islands, for instance monkey island, one of our favourite destinations, and have ...  Read the complete review